The White Brotherhood

The seven Rila lakes are a sacred place for spiritual communion with nature for the White Brotherhood. Each year on August 19 they come from all parts of the world to the Seven Rila Lakes to mark their holiday for a week or more. Barefooted and dressed in white, they sing, dance, greet the sun and see it set under the majestic peaks of the Rila Mountains.

These videos have been posted on YouTube of the same event in previous years but it looks just the same as what I saw last Sunday and, of course, takes place in the same meadow where I was. In the background you can see the high meadows of the Rila, here above timberline. And yes, those white patches in the videos are snow in mid-August.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5Zo9W696C8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Clqi-5WHGJU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXT1PnDbx70


The Bulgarian Peter Danov, the Master of the White Brotherhood, started this teaching which has found followers in Bulgaria, USA, France, and other countries. Danov the son of an Orthodox priest, and himself studying for the priesthood, went to America 1878 to study theology in the Theological School of Boston University. Upon his return to Bulgaria, Peter Danov gave lectures, published booklets, and disseminated his teaching about the Universe and the future perfection of mankind, who according to his teaching, has to live in perfect harmony with nature and the laws of its Creator. In 1922, after long preparation, Danov opened his school, which acquired great popularity in Bulgaria and abroad. In 1929 the White Brotherhood made their first trip to the seven Rila lakes with the Master and fifty followers. They were captivated by the beauty and purity of nature here and became admirers of this magical place, where for years they would come every year on August 19 to perform their mysterious rituals at sunrise, by dancing unity dances to the music of violins and guitars. The vicissitudes in the historical and political fate of Bulgaria reflected on the life of the White Brotherhood during the communism era but in later years the brotherhood rose in popularity and in 1998, seventy years after the first visit to the seven Rila Lakes, 3200 Danovists climbed here again to meet the sunrise and dance their Paneurythmia dressed in white.

Every rock, every glade, lake and peak plays a role in the life and rituals of the White Brotherhood and are given names that are invested with deep symbolism. The first of the Rila lakes they call Maharaji, the Great Respite. Here the Danovists take their first long rest before climbing the next ledge where they usually camp. To get to this lake one hikes a long way through glacial ridges and into a typical glacial valley. The first lake captivates people with its limpidity and calmness and leaves an unforgettable impression. From here one can see Mt. Kabul, which has the form of the Heops Pyramid.

The second lake is called Elbur, God is the Strong One. A camp, which lasts one or two weeks, is pitched here at the second lake. In the early years there were about 500 campers who had organized their life in compliance with the laws of the White Brotherhood. Now, some years there are many more. An anchor is cut on a rock above the spring from which they get water, symbolizing the descent of the human spirit to earth and its embodiment in matter. The water of this spring , according to legend, comes from the next upper lake, The Lake of Purity which is the next destination of the White Brotherhood.

For years the brotherhood had their own boat, which they constructed in Sofia, transported in pieces to Sapareva Banya, and carried up to the crystal lake, where they assembled it. This boat was used only for cruises on the lake and talking and having photos made with the Master, which was a great honor and experience. Every time they broke camp, the brothers sunk the boat in the water so that no one else would use it for fishing and disturb the peace of the lake. In the glade by the second lake in 1938 the members of the White Brotherhood built the famous stone spiral with moraines, where everyone sat at lunch or after meditation. The spiral, in the words of the Master, symbolizes the evolution of man, the people and the state where one was born. Around this spiral the Danovists performed their Paneurythmia for many years.

When in 1955 the authorities decided to build a chalet here, the base stone of the spiral happened to be exactly where the entrance of the new building was to be. The workers however, refused to obey the orders to blast it. With great efforts they managed to move it aside because everyone in Rila knew the great respect of the White Brotherhood for the stone spiral and nature in general.

In 1939 thirty guests from France, adherents of Peter Danov’s teaching, came to the camp of the White Brotherhood. The French brought to the Master a new and very well equipped tent but he refused to enter it. Asked by his astonished compatriots why he would not accept the gift, he retorted, “I haven’t come for the Frenchmen, I have come for the Bulgarians.”

From the spot where the white tent of the Master Peter Danov stood there is a wonderful vista of the valley and the surrounding peaks, reflected in the silver surface of the lake. From the tent of the Master a path led down to the glade where the Danovists camped and every night lit a camp fire, called The Path of Jacob, which had 72 steps, the number of the first followers of Jesus.

Every morning before dawn, while they were camping at the seven Rila Lakes, the members of the White Brotherhood, numbering several hundred, climbed the peak called The Prayer Peak which is on the left side of the lake to meet the first rays of the rising sun. “We walked carefully in a file along the narrow path and climbed the Prayer Peak. Everyone sat at his or her habitual place in silence, reflection and contemplation till the moment the sun rose. Once the sun showed up we said a common prayer. We sang songs and then the Master read a short lecture…” For the worshippers the first ray of the sun is not just a sign of the sunrise but a sacred idea, which they try to abide by in their every act.

Opposite this peak is another one given the name of Peak of Contemplation. On its steep slopes near the bank of the inaccessible Lake of Contemplation, stands a huge rock in the shape of a pentagram pointing upwards.

The third lake the brothers called Balder Daru, meaning The One Who Gives Good. This was the place for those members of the brotherhood who had achieved a stronger inner experience. This area is conducive to mystic experiences. The panorama is captivating with the majesty of the peaks surrounding the lake, standing like protectors.

A narrow path up the ridge leads to The Lake of Purity which is on the eastern side of Mt. Haramiyata and is sunlit from morning to nightfall. To make the way to the lake easier, the members of the brotherhood dug out 122 steps, which also had symbolism. From The Lake of Purity another path leads to The Peak of Contemplation.

The fifth of the seven Rila Lakes is kidney-shaped and is called Mahabur by the Danovists. It is large and is one of the deepest Rila lakes. “We formed a chain on the bank of the lake,” recounted one of the participants in the ritual. “W sat on the bank, put off our shoes, and then walked knee-deep in the water. We had to splash water with both hands, wash our face, say a few formulas and thus come in contact with the lake inhabitants.”

West of the fifth lake rises high Mt. Kabul. The locals have a legend about a maiden who threw herself from this peak rather than betray her Christian faith.

The sixth of the seven Rila Lakes became the favorite lake of the Master and he called it The Heart. And indeed, viewed from a certain angle it has the shape of a heart. This lake is free from snow usually at the end of the summer and beginning of the autumn. During some years the large snowdrift on the left side of the lake never melts. Peter Danov said this snowdrift was the barometer of Bulgaria. Its melting meant a favorable year for the Bulgarians with more radiated and received warmth and love and vice versa. Here the acoustics are like in a church and the White Brotherhood often makes violin concerts there. The Master said that one of the entrances to Agata is in this area. This is the name the White Brotherhood gives to the fabulous city of perfection, which modern humanity has not yet reached.

The seventh, highest and smallest of the seven Rila lakes the brothers called Shemhaa, the Head, because it is the head of all lakes. This lake is not different in beauty and purity from the other lakes but it is inaccessible, according to the brotherhood for those who do not bear inner purity. The Danovists believe it has the extraordinary property of mirroring not only appearance but also the human soul.